The ribbon
by Mlle Snape
Summary: Lucius is an odd beast. Why would a silly ribbon, be of such importance? One shot. CompleteSome torture, if you don't like it, please do not read.


The ribbon 

All characters belong to JKRowling, the situation is mine. If torture isn't your cup of tea, please stop reading at this point. You have been warned.

He huffed and sniffed at the rodent-faced man that now gawked at him in the dimmest way. How this piece from the refuse heap had landed amongst their elitist clan, was beyond understanding. Sure, he did serve the Master hand and foot. But he was utterly inept when asked to undertake tasks that were remotely difficult. His failures were resounding and too many to even remember.

'Pettigrew, you loathsome creature, can't you satisfy you lusts at another time and place. This is hardly the place for it and I for one would hate to lose my lunch so soon. That foie gras was quite expensive.' Lucius waved his cane about, 'Do be less noticeable and take this.. this carcass far away from me.'

Pettigrew's small, moist eyes who were nervously studying the forest a few yards away, wondering if any Aurors were there, suddenly turned his head toward Malfoy. His face was turning beet red as his angry retort fled his lips. "Get bent, Malfoy! I was doing what the Master has asked me to do and that was to keep guard over the proceedings. Would you prefer to be taken by those Aurors that keep creeping up lately?"

Pettigrew was never one to openly defy Malfoy, certainly not to his face in any case, but he had heard enough whining from the blond Death Eater to last him a lifetime. Everything was either 'too dirty' or 'too bellow his station'... Peter was not, or hardly, looking at the lovely beetles he had seen nearby.

Lucius sneered at him before turning to the body that lay disarticulated on the ground. Yardley had been too easy to catch. Too easy, actually. He thought that the Aurors would have better protected a ministry head.

Severus had been right about the effects the potion would have on a human body. The once powerful director of the ministry's department of magical equipment had been forced under Imperio to drink the foul looking potion and moments later, had started to shriek with pain as his articulations had all but melted under his flesh.

Malfoy had led the man on, saying that he held the counter-potion to alleviate his suffering if he only gave them the key that opened a special vault at Gringott's. What the vault contained, the Dark Lord had not thought it prudent to disclose to his minions. But if the Dark One wanted it, then, so be it!

Lucius walked around the rotund man, pushing the legs out of his way as he went along, showing no care or worry about the man's early demise. He was slightly interested to see the fate of the other person that had been kidnapped today. Her pretty features had been to his taste and he wondered if he had time to partake in the traditional activities reserved for the female detainees they could apprehend.

The muffled cries he heard further along the small footpath gave him hope that he could at the very least, sample the girl's sweetly scented flesh before she was eliminated as well. When he heard a loud slap with a corresponding whimper, his eyes lit up. If the girl could still whimper, there was hope after all.

He rounded the bend and could now see Rodolphus manhandling the chit, groping her with his large and cruel hands, trying to break her will and have his kinky way with her. Malfoy stopped a few feet away, shaking his head with disdain as he surveyed his comrade have his fill. The girl, or should we say Yardley's daughter, was barely older than Draco. Rodolphus had quaintly tied her up on a tree, perfectly positioned for any and all nefarious whims he might want to engage in, which by now had meant a good deal of torture.

'Rodolphus, my friend, mind if I take over for a bit of fun?' he asked as he came behind the tall Death Eater. Eyeing Lestrange's flushed and sweaty brow, made Lucius smirk. Some men really did like to make things harder when a simpler route was available. 'I'd like to take a stab at the poor thing before you finish her off.'

The young girl's eyes opened wide with fear as she heard Malfoy's coldly delivered message. Hadn't she been through enough already? The other madman had all but raped her up till now... she felt she was going faint from the sheer fear that was coursing through her veins. She prayed to any deity that existed, hoping that they would be merciful enough to take her away right now. But life being as such, no gods would come to her rescue. Not today, nor ever.

'Go ahead, old man!' Rodolphus breathed ominously as he stood leering at the partially clad girl. Her tattered robes only hung by minute threads by now and showed off her womanly forms quite brazenly. 'She's all yours for now, but I get to finish her off if you don't mind.'

Lucius nodded and lifted his cane to push the girl's chin up. He steadily took another step toward her, latching his cold grey stare upon her face. 'Yes, she'll be yours when I finish with her.' His words were uttered barely above a whisper but held all the cruelty that he only could infuse with such passion and hate.

The girl shuddered in response, which only made Lestrange grin with glee. He really did like to see them suffer.

With a sound slap on Malfoy's shoulder, Rodolphus turned away and was going back to see what Rodent-boy was up to. 'See you later, my pet... I'm looking forward to having a bit more fun with you.' Lestrange casually let out over his shoulder as he walked away.

The girl's eyes followed his retreating back until she felt a warm breath caressing the right side of her face. She dared not turn her face knowing that if she did so, she would be face to face with her other abductor. Closing her eyes, she struggled to stay calm and swallow the bile that was rising up in her throat. Would this hell ever end?

Lucius studied her features, almost laughing as he saw her try to keep her countenance in the face of obvious danger. He wondered fleetingly if she could feel her end coming and if so, would she be resigned to it or would she struggle to free herself from this predicament. Fight or flee, which would it be?

With his gloved hand he caressed the side of her jaw, reaching back to grab a handful of her dishevelled red tresses. But as he pulled on it, a short strand of ribbon came into view. It was almost nothing, really. About a half-inch wide and 4 inches long, but its colour was very appealing; its green, blue and iridescent silver sheen made it stand out against the backdrop of brilliant red hair.

Lucius stared at it for a while, an oddly curious look coming upon his otherwise coldly handsome face. Letting go of the hair, he gently fingered the bit of fabric, watching the sunlight play happily upon its surface. He said nothing, but suddenly grasped the girl's chin and roughly turned her head to one side to undo the ribbon from her hair. Letting her go, he removed one of his gloves to feel the material. It was as soft and silky as he had imagined it to be.

'Where did you get this?' he barked at her, his eyes moving from the ribbon to her face.

The girl, Lucy, was taken aback by the question, her mind not totally comprehending what he wanted from her. Her lack of understanding was obviously reflected in her eyes and since Malfoy was not renowned for his patience, he backhanded her and repeated his question more forcefully.

'Where did you purchase this ribbon? Tell me now and I might be more lenient with you.' He threatened her between his clenched teeth.

'London... in a Muggle shop near Notting hill.' she let out in a hush as her fog dense mind tried to clear itself.

'Muggle London?' he hissed as he let the ribbon drop to the ground as if it were poison. 'Have you no shame or honour? Wearing such an item that filth has made!'

'But...' she tried to explain but was backhanded a second time. As blood slowly started to ooze out of her mouth, Lucius took a few steps away and stared viciously at her. 'You are unfit to be called a witch even if you are a Pureblood like your father. How dare you walk upon their streets and don their wears?'

Lucy didn't dare to speak, seeing the Death Eater's face contort with rage. She felt that much closer to her own demise as his hand came up to squeeze her throat. 'You're as useless as those Mudbloods for all I care. Rodolphus will love torturing you, my sweet. Very much so...'

Lucy felt herself suffocating and her lungs were screaming for some air. Her lips were turning blue as her complexion had paled considerably before he let go of her. But then a nasty gleam came to his steely eyes, making her gasp with fright. 'My taste for you has somewhat waned but I will not be leaving without a small taste nonetheless.'

His wand was extracted from his pocket and he made a slicing movement; he had carved a deep slash across her chest, essentially cutting off what was left of her robes from her upper body. Blood poured copiously from the wound, making this a macabre tableau for anyone to behold. He bent down to retrieve a small rock and transfigured it into a small bottle with a stopper.

'Are you still a virgin or a slut?' he demanded coldly.

Lucy trembled with pain, feeling the burn the slicing hex had created on her flesh. She didn't want to answer, she couldn't. This madman was going to kill her for a stupid ribbon her friend had bought her on a silly trip through Muggle London. A bloody lark they had hastily decided on to snub their pureblooded, haughty parents. This was just too surreal for her, but the pain she felt was not. Nor was the faintness she felt as her blood continued to seep and pool at her feet.

He lifted a well-arched brow at her, waiting for the answer he sought. 'Well? What are you?' he said with a grim smile. 'Have you've lost your virginity to some Muggle already? Maybe that is why you are not answering me.' He lifted his wand and uttered 'Imperio' as he aimed for her heart.

Her gaze became fixed and unfocused. Lucius just smiled as he asked again: 'Are you a virgin, my dear?'

She nodded slightly without even trying to stay her words, her mind caught up in the spell's bind. She had no other choice but to answer his question. No rebellion would be possible this day.

With a curt nod, he came to her side and collected some blood as it dripped off her breast. When the bottle was filled, he fitted the stopper tightly and pocketed his find. Snape would find some use for a young woman's blood, he was quite sure of it. He lifted the curse from her and waited till she had gotten her bearings again.

She shook her head, trying to free her mind from the fog again. That's when her eyes fell on Malfoy and she remembered the terrible situation she was in. Closing her eyes, she awaited for death since nothing else would come out of this meeting.

Malfoy felt her despair and was quite proud of his achievement. This chit would die soon and he had been able to remove any thought of possible safety from the girl. Putting his glove back on, he then carefully swiped a bead of blood from her breast again and brought it to his mouth. The salty, metal tinged taste was intoxicating right now... even more so as her eyes popped open and the horror of his act was clearly displayed upon her face.

'You are sweet, my dear.' he breathed sensually, enjoying the sheer cruelty of the moment. He knew he was a sick bastard, but seeing it in her eyes made it that much more desirable. For himself anyway...

Lestrange came back into view and was whistling under his breath as he came to a stop next to Malfoy. 'Hmm. You seem to have taken some liberties in the torture department, Lucius. I really thought you were a 'love 'em and leave 'em' kind of man.'

Rodolphus surveyed his friend's handiwork with a speculative eye. 'Not bad though. Not bad at all. But it needs to be less symmetrical, that gash is too well centred for my taste.'

Lucius rolled his eyes at him before turning back to the girl. 'The man is an artist! You have to forgive him for his apparent lack of manners at the moment. He does like to spout off about his own techniques when it comes to the grand art of torture.'

Lucy was barely hearing any of it, the jokes that they bantered on about were mostly lost on her, as she weaved in and out of consciousness from blood loss.

When she was finally out of it, Rodolphus sighed loudly. 'Ah! No more fun for _moi_... might as well finish the job off and return to the house. The Master will not be very happy with our sadly empty hands.'

Lucius concurred with a nod as he watched the girl hang limply from the tree. 'Not much to be done here. She's almost gone anyway, the bloody idiot...'

Lestrange spun around to face his friend, a questioning look upon his face. 'Why do you say that, Lucius?'

'Its nothing that a tall glass of Ogden's can't clear up. Come up to the manor afterward and I'll explain what happened.' Lucius said as he straightened his shoulders before walking away from the present scene. He abhorred long goodbyes and Lestrange's way of eliminating opponents. Too messy for his taste, he thought as walked along the footpath again. He could hear the slicing hexes the other man was using, but preferred to not listen to the unseemly 'splats' of flesh tearing apart. Leave it to Rodolphus to enjoy such muck.


End file.
